I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to shipping containers and more particularly to a shipping container for decorative wreaths.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
Decorative wreaths are made from pine boughs and fir boughs fastened to a metal hoop to form a circular toroidal shape. The wreaths include flowers, ribbons, bells, cones and other decorations to add life and color. In the past, the decorative wreaths have been stored and shipped in ordinary cardboard boxes. This method of storing and shipping wreaths has presented a number of problems. Ordinary cardboard boxes tend to collapse, allowing the wreaths to be crushed before arriving at their destination. Moisture given off by the wreaths is absorbed by the cardboard, thereby weakening the box. Stacking wreaths on top of each other will also crush the underlying wreaths, making them unattractive. The problems of collapsing boxes and crushed wreaths prompted research and design efforts in the area of a new shipping package for decorative wreaths.
First efforts in designing a new carton for shipping and storing wreaths included adding dividers or inserts and a wax curtain coating to improve the strength of the carton. The inserts helped with the problem of crushed boxes, but they did not help with the problem of the wreaths being crushed by their own weight. Curtain coating the interior of the boxes improved the strength of the box by preventing impregnation of moisture into the cardboard. However, the curtain coating also held almost all of the moisture given off by the wreaths inside the box. This moisture condensed on the interior surface, ran down the sides and puddled on the bottom. The water created an environment conducive to growing mold, resulting in rotted wreaths.
Current container designs do not individually or as a whole overcome the problems of crushed boxes or crushed and moldy or rotted wreaths. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,641, issued to Jerzewski, Jr., discloses a container for packaging a plurality of tape rolls. The container has two ends and walls therebetween and is provided with two inserts which form at least one sturdy, adjustable beam for supporting the tape rolls away from the walls of the container. Each insert comprises a planar base for fitting in close contact with an end of the container and an elongated projection extending into the container from a central portion of the base. When the two inserts are fitted against the opposed ends of the container, the elongated projections overlie each other and form the supporting beam. The inserts of the '641 patent add support to the ends of the box, not to the middle of the box. The middle of the box is susceptible to being crushed by the weight of other boxes or objects stacked on it. The box described in the '641 patent also does not have any holes in the ends or the sides to allow moisture to escape. Further, the inserts do not have any holes designed for ventilating the container. Thus, if decorative wreaths were shipped in a container similar to the one disclosed in the '641 patent, the moisture from the wreaths would condense in the container and penetrate the cardboard causing it to become weak. The moisture would also create an environment conducive to growing mold, resulting in rotten wreaths.
In contrast to the box disclosed in the '641 patent, the present invention uses three inserts, one on each end and one in the middle to support the box. The additional insert adds support to the middle of the box so the box will not be crushed. The wreath shipping box of the present invention has a treated interior. The interior walls and inserts are provided with a moisture barrier or wax curtain coating to prevent absorption of moisture by the cardboard. A number of ventilation holes are formed in the box and in the inserts to provide adequate ventilation to the wreaths during shipping and storage.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,280,987, issued to Steinbock, discloses a container that uses a spindle for stacking rolls and spools of tape. The container and spindle arrangement disclosed in the '987 patent show the rolls stacked one on top of another. If its teachings were followed and applied to wreaths, this arrangement would result in crushing of the wreaths. Further, the '987 patent does not disclose the concept of using a third insert to support the box or the use of ventilation holes in the box or the inserts. Thus, the '987 patent does not teach or suggest a solution to the problems of crushed boxes and wreaths or condensation of moisture.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,079,835, issued to Kendig, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,642,183, issued to Prossen, disclose containers for shipping or storing articles such as rolls of flexible sheet or film material or rolls of yarn. The containers disclosed in these patents do not disclose using a horizontal tube to hang wreaths on or boxes and inserts with ventilation holes in them designed to allow the container and the articles inside the container to breathe.
From the above analysis, it can be seen that the prior art references of which we are aware, individually and as a whole, do not disclose a decorative wreath shipping container having 1) a third insert for structural support, 2) a horizontal tube for suspending the wreaths so they are not crushed by their own weight nor 3) ventilation holes in the boxes and inserts to prevent moisture from impregnating the cardboard and weakening the structural integrity of the container and to prevent moisture from creating an environment conducive to growing mold that results in rotted wreaths.